Lyft driver Steven Smith uses a sanitizing wipe to disinfect his vehicle as he waits to get a call from a passenger in San Francisco, Calif. on Thursday, March 19, 2020. Smith and other Lyft drivers have seen a decline in ridership amidst the Bay Area’s shelter-in-place in response to the global outbreak of the Coronavirus. (Jessica Christian/The San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images)
San Francisco Chronicle/Hearst Newspapers via Getty Images
Americans filing for unemployment benefits have been stymied by an overloaded system strained by record volume amid the coronavirus pandemic.
But the process has been especially fraught for self-employed workers and others, like those in the so-called gig economy, who are newly eligible to collect unemployment benefits.
While applying for unemployment benefits is generally a one-step process for traditional salaried workers receiving a W-2, it’s become a two-step process for the self-employed, gig and other workers in most states, according to…
